SURFSIDE (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 03rd July, 2021) Volunteers have everything necessary to support people affected by the Surfside building collapse in Miami, Florida but are looking for housing for those displaced, Dalia Blumstein, local resident and volunteer, told Sputnik on Friday.
On Thursday, US President Joe Biden said the US Federal emergency agency would provide temporary housing for survivors, in addition to expediting visas for relatives.
"We are not accepting any more donations. It's local people donating but we are at capacity. We don't need any more," Blumstein said, noting that local residents have been donating everything necessary including food and clothing.
She also said churches and synagogues are involved in the aid efforts.
When asked what are the most urgent needs, she said, "Right now, it's finding homes in the community. That's important to the displaced people because this is where they have lived and this is where they want to stay."
Their children, she added, go to schools here and they have support in this community. She said it was a beautiful thing to see local people offering homes to those in need.
Blumstein went on to say that there is also a resource center nearby where all the families can go to get social security cards, drivers licenses, phones, gift cards, and other essential things.
"And then the Red Cross is here, FEMA, so they have all the support you know but going forward it's going to be a day to day thing," she added.
Moreover, Blumstein noted that they even found masseuses that provide some 15-minute massages to the responders to give them some relief after lifting heavy weights.
Blumstein has been a Surfside resident for 20 years.
"That's what brings me here. I just felt when it happened," she shared why she came to work as a volunteer at the Surfside Community Center. "I just felt internally that I couldn't continue with my routine, that I have the ability as an at-home mom to have extra time and I felt that I needed to be involved in some capacity. So, that's how it all began. It has been such an amazing experience to see the outpouring of love, not only from our amazing Surfside community but from all over. I've been here every day."
She said some people are coming from other towns.
"I had a woman coming on a bus for 3 hours to drop off a teddy bear and a toy for a child because she knew how it felt to loose a loved one. And it's just a beautiful thing to be a part of," Blumstein added.
She noted that there are dozens of volunteers working 24/7 there trying to support those affected by the tragedy.
"There is an entire kitchen in the back, a kosher kitchen. We are feeding everybody - first responders, the family that comes, so it's a 24 hour operation.
When asked how the people affected are doing at the moment, she said, "as you can expect, it's devastating, it's a shock."
Blumstein shared that volunteering at the center helps her, keeping busy.
"I really haven't had much of a time to let it sink in. Little by little I feel like this is what I need to do now," she explained. "It's a shock. It's devastating to see those pictures on tv. I can't believe it's, but it's the reality and we just have to support the survivors,"
According to the latest figures, updated daily by Miami-Dade County Mayor Daniella Levine Cava, the bodies of 20 people have so far been retrieved from under the rubble, with 128 people unaccounted for and 188 accounted for.
